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A Perfect School Holiday

For families with children, international travel is a mind-opening experience. You get to sample a different culture, discover amazing landscapes, meet unusual creatures and tackle new challenges together. For many Australian families, the country next door is a natural first choice for a school holiday adventure - it’s refreshingly different, but not too strange

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New Zealand has always been a favourite holiday destination for Australian families. The kids will love the food, the tap water’s for drinking, nothing is venomous and the locals are friendly.

The anticipation of a week or two away can be heightened by involving your kids in the planning. Pin a map to the wall; learn a few Maori place names or phrases; research destinations and things to do. When you get home the fun continues with a scrapbook or online photo album that captures all the best moments.

Where the wild things are


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At predator-free bird sanctuaries - like Tiritiri Matangi, Mt Bruce, Karori Sanctuary and Ulva Island - you can wander through fabulous native forests that are home to some of the world’s rarest bird species. Here the birds are trusting and friendly - many will flit and feed just an arm’s length away. Gannet colonies are always a hit with kids, even if it’s just for the memorable smell, so check out Muriwai near Auckland or the Cape Kidnappers near Napier. At Dunedin’s Otago Peninsula, royal albatross sweep in from the Southern Ocean along the rugged cliffs, just metres from your camera. You can also watch yellow-eyed penguins waddle ashore at the end of a day’s fishing, while you watch from a series of ground-level hides linked by tunnels. North of Christchurch, Kaikoura is home to a resident population of sperm whales; it’s also a popular rest stop for migrating species, such as humpbacks. A Kaikoura whale-watch trip is an experience your family will never forget.

Volcanoes, boiling mud and geysers

Kids are fascinated by volcanoes, so Rotorua and Taupo are always a hit on a family holiday. You’ll see boiling pools of mud, hissing steam vents, brightly coloured mineral pools and in roaring geysers. At White Island you take a guided walk on an active marine volcano - gas masks are provided, which makes the adventure even more exciting. At the end of the day the whole family can enjoy naturally-heated spa pools - nearly all the hotels and motels in Rotorua and Taupo have hot pools to enjoy. If mum needs a break, some geothermal beauty therapy at a lakeside spa is a memorable way to unwind.

Dipping into Maori culture

Maori traditions and values have played a strong role in shaping what is unique about the New Zealand way of life. Local Maori guides add a unique perspective to forest walks, river journeys and historic tours. And traditional Maori cultural performances are not to be missed - they combine power, harmony and precise movement in ways that can raise the hair on the back of your neck. Some of the best known performances can be enjoyed at Waitangi in the Bay of Islands, the Auckland museum and at Rotorua in the Central North Island.

Awesome fresh air adventures

Balloon over Canterbury - click for more.

Hot air ballooning on the Canterbury Plains takes you from the alps to the sea.

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New Zealanders and Australians share a love of the great outdoors, but the landscapes we call home are often very different. About a third of New Zealand’s land area is protected from development, so there are countless forest walking tracks up and down mountains to sweeping views, lakes, rivers and waterfalls. Our nine ‘Great Walks’ deliver the most spectacular scenery of them all, accompanied by the fun of sleeping in hikers’ huts or tents in the middle of nowhere.

Some of the biggest holiday memories come from things like ice-hiking on glaciers in Westland; traversing active volcanic landscapes on the one-day Tongariro Crossing; abseiling into huge limestone caves at Waitomo; and horse riding to gold mining ghost towns in Central Otago.

Whooping it up on the water

With a massive coastline and a backbone of alpine mountains feeding countless rivers, you’re never far from a boating adventure in New Zealand. You can crew on an Americas Cup racing yacht on Auckland Harbour or Lake Wakatipu in Queenstown. In the Bay of Islands you can explore islands and coves on boats that range from high-speed adventure machines to historic sailing vessels. In alpine areas jet boat rides will carry you at high-speed over shallow river rapids, past steep-sided gorges and through lush green forests to inaccessible wilderness areas. And if you’re the kind of family that likes to paddle your own canoe, our best kayaking journeys include the Whanganui River, Marlborough Sounds and the Abel Tasman National Park.

Absolute madness

No holiday is complete with a dose of madness. Depending on the age of your kids, you can try bungy jumping, fly-by-wire, zorbing, canyon swinging, sprint jetboating, ballooning, quad biking, mazes, flying foxes, sky walking, white water sledging, rock sliding and many more forms of ridiculousness. "Kiwi ingenuity" is the one ingredient that they all have in common.

How to spot quality

When putting your school holiday itinerary together, look for the Qualmark© logo on websites for accommodation and activities - it’s your sign that the operator has been independently quality assessed.

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